The Nights
by John Reed
Summary: Set after the Indigo Spell. Sydney tries to figure out how the arrival of Zoe will affect her new plans, and her relationship with Adrian...
1. The First Night

_This story (at least after the Prologue) begins after the end of __The Indigo Spell__…_

Prologue

Eddie Castile watched Jill Mastrano as they ate. Not that it was creepy, it was his job.

When they were first sent to Palm Springs, he was the only guardian assigned to her. But soon Strigoi had shown up in Palm Springs. They were not after Jill, she hadn't been found by them, but he and the Moroi princess had gone to save Adrian Ivashkov and Sydney Sage, the Alchemist that had been assigned to help Jill and those with her. It was after that incident that Angeline Dawes, the erratic Keeper dhampir, had joined them.

And now, he sat next to another guardian that had been sent to Palm Springs – Neil Raymond. Syndey had admitted that she said something that had resulted in Neil being sent to join them. She had been vague, and he wanted to question the alchemist about it, but it didn't look like he would have the chance. Sydney was leaving Palm Springs.

He had trouble believing it. Sydney had put her life and reputation on line for the Moroi and dhampirs so often – first for Rose, now for Jill. She had survived a Strigoi assault, defended Sonya Karp in front of a group of hostile vampire hunters, and done so much more for them. She was even able to control Angeline, or control her more than anyone else.

But Sydney was leaving, and though he knew Jill had tried to talk her out of it, it apparently hadn't worked. Not that Jill had told him anything specific about what was said, she was just so upset. He and Angeline were upset as well. Angeline was too embarrassed about her recent indiscretion to look at him or Jill, if she looked at anyone, she looked at Neil; but mostly she just looked at her food.

So Eddie watched Jill, but not just because it was his job – he watched her for any sign that Sydney had changed her mind. He didn't know everything about Sydney and Adrian – Adrian barely spoke to him, and Sydney never said anything about them. He had, however, seen enough to suspect that something was going on between them, something that meant that if anyone would know that Sydney had changed her mind, it would be Adrian. And because of their bond, if Adrian knew, Jill would know. So he watched Jill.

Unfortunately, Jill was still depressed. Eddie had to wonder what Neil thought about all if it. He wondered if the newly-arrived guardian had misgivings about coming to Palm Springs. Neil had to know about Eddie's controversial status among the guardians, a status so controversial that it had taken the queen to get him assigned to Jill. He had to wonder what was said to Neil about Angeline, though he doubted the Keepers were mentioned. Neil had to know that Jill was in hiding, that other Moroi were searching for her. He didn't know if Adrian had been mentioned, though he was sure that the fact that Adrian had brought Jill back to life, creating the bond they shared, was not mentioned. Only he, Adrian, Jill and Sydney knew about that.

And he had to wonder what Neil was told about Sydney. He doubted anyone had mentioned how she had helped and protected Rose, he doubted her trouble with the Alchemists had been mentioned; these were secrets kept by the Moroi and the Alchemists. Neil probably thought of Sydney as a cog in the Alchemist machine, someone who could be easily replaced. Someone who would be replaced as soon as Eddie reported her missing in a day or two. Neil would never know what he had missed.

Neil had given up on making small talk with the other dhampirs and the vampire princess. He was mostly playing with his food, just like the others. As they played with their food, Eddie watched Jill and worried. Who would replace Sydney? Could he even begin to hope that her replacement could do what she had done? What could he do if…

Jill sat up straight suddenly. She had a confused look on her face for a few seconds, then it melted into a smile. She looked at him and visibly relaxed. For the first time since Sydney had told him she was going to Mexico, he had hope – hope that she had changed her mind.

"So, Guardian Raymond," Jill started, switching her attention to Neil, "where are you from?"

* * *

The First Night

I rarely heard my alarm go off, though I set it every night. I was awake a couple of minutes before the alarm this morning. I turned it off, as always, getting out of bed to start the day. As I stood, I was disappointed to realize that the night had passed without a visit from Adrian. I slept undisturbed. Since we had parted with his promise to 'call me first thing in the morning', I shouldn't have been surprised. I wasn't surprised, just disappointed.

As I looked for my phone, just to be sure it would be in my hands when he called, I noticed Zoe. The events of the previous night returned to my mind at the same time I heard a knock on my door. As I walked to the door, I glanced back at Zoe – at least she was still sleeping. I was pretty sure that I had arrived long after her bedtime last night – she may sleep for awhile, which would be fine with me.

As soon as I opened the door I was pulled into a hug at the same time someone yelled "Sydney!"

I pushed Jill back through the door, back into the hall, though she held on to me tightly. I thought I saw Zoe stirring as I closed the door behind us. Great.

I returned her hug, though briefly and awkwardly. I was not used to being hugged by vampires – other than Adrian. Even Jill's hug made me cringe a little. Whatever I had with Adrian, it obviously did not extend to other Moroi, or, I would guess, dhampirs. Not that I planned to test my hypothesis with either race.

"Sydney, you stayed!" Jill said excitedly as soon as I managed to get her to release me. "I knew you would. I mean, I thought you would, I hoped you would, and you did!"

She was speaking very fast, a habit she had when she was excited.

"Jill, calm down," I said.

She did, but not before she said, "Adrian's so happy."

A reminder of the bond, a reminder that we needed to be careful. It never bothered me when I was with Adrian, only when I remembered that Jill might see everything that he and I did, know everything that he felt about me.

"Are you OK with it?" I asked tentatively. She seemed to be, but I still worried. How could I not?

"Why do you even ask? I told you how it makes me feel when he's with you…"

"Fine," I said, quickly cutting her off. I didn't want to hear it. We still needed to figure it out. "I need you to do me a favor, Jill. Okay?"

"Of course, anything."

"Adrian's supposed to call me this morning. Ask him not to. My sister's here, and we need to be even more careful than I thought before."

Jill looked a little confused. "Sister?"

I nodded. "Zoe. She's an alchemist, and apparently she's been assigned to Palm Springs."

"Alchemist?"

"Yes." I was a little annoyed. I didn't have time for her to repeat ever key word I was saying. "So call Adrian, tell him not to call me today. In fact, I probably shouldn't even see him today, Zoe's going to be with me all day."

Jill sighed. I thought it odd that she looked disappointed. "Sydney…"

"Will you do that right away?" I asked, interrupting her again.

She nodded, and turned to leave.

"We'll meet later today so I can introduce Zoe to everyone at school, OK?"

"Fine. Meet later today, call Adrian right now," she mumbled as she headed for the stairs to return to her room.

"Thanks." I said as she walked away. Then I took a deep breath and went back into my room.

Zoe was sitting on the edge of her bed. Though I had my own room, I was glad that it still had two beds, like the other rooms in the dorm.

"Who was that?" Zoe asked.

"Jill, the Moroi princess," I answered. As her eyes widened, I continued, "You'll meet them all in a couple of hours."

For the first time since I arrived to find Zoe in my room, my sister looked nervous. I doubt she had ever met a vampire, or dhampir. I knew how she felt. With everything the alchemists taught about the Moroi and dhampirs, meeting them for the first time was a nerve-racking experience.

"Zoe," I said, trying to reassure her, "it'll be fine. I know these people, you'll like them and they'll like you."

"Like?" she asked, her eyes seeming to widen even more. Had I slipped up already?

"Come on," I said, shaking my head. "We need to move. You know we have to be out today."

She finally smiled. "I know, and I know where we're going. I have already been added to your reservation."

"Yay," I said with as much enthusiasm as I could muster.

All I could think of as we packed and dressed was 'how am I ever going to see Adrian?'

* * *

The First Day

Latte was still out of commission, but the new guardian had brought a large van that could hold all six of us, and our luggage. We stood outside of it as 'proper' introductions were made. I had, of course, met the new guardian yesterday; though only briefly. And having Zoe here was a surprise to everyone.

"Miss Sage," Neal was saying to Zoe as he shook her hand. "It is a pleasure to meet you."

"Call me Zoe," Zoe managed to say, repeating what I had said when Neal told me it was a 'pleasure to see me again.' At least he was nice, and Zoe managed to act fairly confident. I think the vampire and dhampirs noticed her nervousness, but were too nice to say anything.

Angeline was the worst, she shook Zoe's hand enthusiastically and wouldn't release it until I intervened. I really think she noticed Zoe's nervousness and was just trying to be nice.

I wondered if Adrian would have said something, something like he said to Keith when they first met. It was on the doorstep of a house, a house full of vampires and dhampirs, and after being introduced, Adrian offered his hand to Keith. Keith didn't take it. Noticing how uncomfortable Keith was, he told Keith "They're waiting for you, go on in," then he added "if you dare," with a sinister laugh. It got to Keith, and though I had glared at Adrian then, I did think it was a little funny. As big a jerk and traitor as Keith had proven himself to be, the memory of it nearly made me laugh out loud now.

I assumed Adrian wouldn't say anything to Zoe, or even anything about her nervousness - for my sake, if nothing else. But you never knew with Adrian. Hopefully Zoe would be more relaxed around Moroi by the time she met Adrian.

"Sydney?" Eddie broke me out of my trance. "We need to go."

It was time. We were checked out of the dorm for the holidays, we were switching one hiding place for another and we would only have time to get there, unpack, and go to bed.

For today, anyway. For tomorrow, I would have start figuring out how Zoe would fit into all of this.

* * *

The Second Night

I'm not one to use drugs. I don't need them for my health – the alchemist tattoo includes vampire blood, and who knows what else, that makes healing from disease or injury much easier for me than for a normal human. At least it did, who knows what Marcus' injection did to it.

Still, no drugs - not for health, not for sleep – nothing. But I really wanted to get to sleep that night – the night we arrived at our new, temporary, hiding place.

When I excused myself from the group earlier than anyone expected, saying I was tired, I was sure Jill was giving me a knowing smile. Another reminder that I needed to be careful about anything she might see.

Then Zoe followed me to our room – a reminder that I needed to take care in nearly everything I did, everything I said. But the Zoe worry was one for tomorrow. It was Jill that I needed to be careful for tonight.

I was in bed, lights off, much earlier than Zoe hoped. I even put her off, telling her I was unbelievably tired, when she tried to talk to me.

"We can talk tomorrow," I told her, "tonight, I need to sleep."

It was true, though not because I was tired.

It wasn't all that tired, but I could still fall asleep. No drugs, I'm not one for drugs. But I am one for spells, and I took note of a spell in one the books Ms. Terwilliger had made me read. A spell to help the spell-caster sleep.

I closed my eyes and spoke under my breath. I could feel my awareness of the room slip away as I drifted to sleep. I'm not sure how much, if any time passed; but I became aware of myself in a totally different place – a room filled with easels and paintings in various stages of completion.

I knew Adrian would be looking right at me, and he was. I didn't make him come to me, or say anything – I just ran to his open arms.

"Sage," He said warmly as he wrapped his arms around me. "When Jill called, I thought you might be dumping me again."

It was strange that I cringed a little. Even though his arms were wrapped around me, I felt a bit of a sting about what I had done to him so often, so recently.

"No, never again," I said. "Things have just gotten a little more complicated. But we'll work it out."

"We'll work it out," he repeated. "That's what we do."

"That's what we do," I repeated under my breath. And I knew we would. I also knew that, whatever I had to do during the days, for Zoe, the alchemists, or whoever; I would always have Adrian for the nights. Well, maybe Adrian and Jill, but we would work that out.


	2. The Second Night

The Second Night (Cont.)

It's not that I was getting tired of Adrian. I don't think that's ever going to happen. I was, however, getting a little worried about him. Though I slept through his visits to my dreams, I knew that he had to be awake.

I ignored the thought when it first occurred to me, the thought to tell Adrian to leave the dream and get some sleep. I ignored it several times. The truth was, I didn't want the dream to end.

I was able to talk to Adrian freely about Zoe's arrival, about the new guardian. I could tell him why I had said the things to Stanton that made her send Neil and Zoe to Palm Springs. I could tell him all of my fears and concerns, and I did. I told him everything that was going through my mind since we had parted after our day in Malibu.

"Does she look like you?" Adrian asked.

I tilted my head in confusion. "She?" I had been telling him about Neil and thought he was listening, but I guess his mind was somewhere else.

"Your sister. I'll be honest, Sage, if she looks like you, I don't know if I'll be able to stand the shock of beauty that will be sent my way when I see you both together."

"Adrian!" I exclaimed. "She's 15 years old."

"Ah, there it is."

I was still a little ticked at him. "There what is?" I challenged.

"Your expression of your undying love for me."

Maybe I really was tired after all. I was having trouble following him. "What?"

He mimicked my exasperated "Adrian!" then he added "That's how you told me you loved me – I mean, before yesterday."

"That's how I told you I was annoyed with you," I corrected.

"I'm sure you're wrong. You said it all the time, but you kept coming back to me. What was I to think?"

I shook my head. Maybe he was right, but I wasn't going to admit it, or even think about it. Instead I tried to do to him what he did to me.

"You'll have to wait and see," I told him.

I felt a little smug at the confusion that slowly appeared on his face. "See…what I thought?" He finally managed.

"See if she looks like me. If there really is a shock of beauty that you don't survive, I'm sure we can get Sonya to come back and raise you from the dead."

"Already plotting to kill me, Sage." He murmured as he pulled me into another hug. This is the way we had spent most of the dream. Still, the thought that he needed some sleep occurred to me again.

"Adrian, you need to get some sleep."

"I have all day," he whispered as he kissed my neck. "You don't want to see me during the day, classes are on break. What am I supposed to do during daylight hours, except sleep?"

"I want to see you," I murmured as his lips moved to my cheek. "I just need to figure out how to introduce you to Zoe. Just give me a couple of days and you can join us."

"That's two days, right?" he asked, finally reaching my lips. "Because I have a calendar," he added.

"Then calendar it," I gasped, "right now, before we do something that will make Jill avoid me again."

"Fine," he sighed. "But we're supposed to be working this out, not putting it off."

I wasn't ready for it, I'm not sure I'll ever be ready for it, but he took a step back from me and smiled. I might have been reaching for him as he faded away, I'm not sure. I was too captivated by those green eyes…

* * *

The Second Day

It was a nice day – for humans and dhampirs, anyway. The sun shone brightly, which is why we were here. No one would think of looking for a hiding Moroi in Phoenix. At least that's what Stanton thought when she made arrangements for us.

We had to leave Amberwood for the holiday, but we couldn't go to anyone's home, so we came here.

We had taken precautions with Jill's appearance, she dressed in layers and wore sunglasses. It would be hard to tell that she was Moroi. Zoe and I had covered our tattoos. Actually, I was a little jealous of the dhampirs, who really didn't have to do anything to alter their appearance.

I had my bag, full of alchemist and witch supplies, with me. Hopper was in there, too, though not in 'dragon' form. I couldn't bear to leave him at the school, and I knew that Adrian would eventually end up with us anyway, so there was no point in leaving him there.

We had stopped for brunch on the way to our first day's activities. The restaurant was kind of a dive, but Jill wanted to try it and she was the point of all of us being there. So we stopped.

As I watched Eddie and Angeline enter the restaurant to make sure it was safe for the rest of us, I realized that we had three guardians and two alchemists for one girl. It was amazing. We had survived with just one of each when we first went to Amberwood, but I guess things had changed.

Eddie came out and motioned for us to enter. As we did, I noticed something on Jill's face, so instead of going straight to the table Angeline was sitting at, I pulled Jill aside.

"Come with me to the Ladies' Room," I said. "We need to fix something."

Angeline heard. "Do you want me to come?" she asked.

I shook my head. "No. We'll just be a minute."

She remained at the table, but Zoe followed us. I sighed, but really, it wasn't a surprise. This was all still new to her.

Zoe just stood by the door as I worked on Jill. No one said anything until my sister opened the bathroom door when we heard a commotion in the restaurant.

I rushed to the door as Zoe opened it. The room we had just left was a mess, tables strewn aside or turned over. People fighting – or, more precisely, dhampirs fighting.

There were at least four of them, but they were being held off by Eddie and the others. I caught Eddie's eye, he shook his head. I'm not sure what he meant, but I took it as an order to get Jill out of there.

Jill was behind me, trying to look through the door, but I pushed her back. I pulled Zoe back to the counter as well. My bag was there, still open. I reached in for my witch supplies and found a necklace, which I quickly snapped around my neck. I threw the bag over my shoulder and grabbed Jill's hand with one of mine, and Zoe's hand with the other.

"Come with me, and whatever happens, don't let go of my hand. Do you understand?"

Both girls nodded as I looked at them. Then I spoke the words of the invisibility spell, the one I hoped had worked when I went to Marcus, and led them through the door.

I avoided the dining area, and was able to go straight into the kitchen. We bumped into some things, things and people, which resulted in some very confused looks. Good. It looked like the spell was working.

It was hot in the kitchen, and I really had no idea where we were going, but I finally glimpsed a door and headed to it.

"Open it, Zoe," I commanded. She started to reach with her right hand, which I held, so I squeezed it tightly. She got the message and pushed it open with her left hand. We managed to get down the concrete stairs that the door opened to without tripping, though barely.

I was afraid to go to the front of the restaurant, so I scanned what I could see nearby. I finally started walking when I saw what looked like a cheap motel that I thought we could get to.

I glanced back at the restaurant parking lot as we walked. It looked like there were at least a couple of cars that were there that had arrived after us. Maybe that didn't mean anything, maybe it was part of the trouble. We weren't hanging around to figure it out.

I was getting very tired, very fast. This spell hadn't been so bad when it was just me trying to be invisible, but working it on three of us apparently wasn't so easy

It took us 15 or 20 minutes, but we finally reached the motel. It was even more of a dive than the restaurant, for which I was glad. Surely no one would look for a Moroi princess here.

I managed to get Jill and Zoe into a hall past the front desk. I hadn't looked at them much while we walked, but I knew they were alarmed. They were not happy to have me leave them, but they stayed quiet while they waited for me to return, as I asked.

I kept the spell on myself until I exited the motel, finally letting it go when I re-entered, which I did not do until I had put on the wig that I had used when going with Adrian to try to find and warn the potential victims of Ms. Terwilliger's sister.

It was nowhere near check in time, and I had to bribe the creepy front desk clerk to give me a room at that time of the day. I used the fake ID Marcus had gotten for me to use in Mexico. Even thought the ID had my actual picture, the clerk didn't question my hair color, or anything, really. I wished Adrian was here to blur my features a little more, but hoped the wig, and the fact that I was checking in alone, would be enough.

I went to the room alone, then put my necklace back on. Jill and Zoe quietly obeyed when I took their hands and we walked through the halls back to my room without incident.

As soon as the door was closed behind us, however, the objections started.

"Sydney," Jill started, "what are doing here. We need to go back to Eddie and Neil."

I was exhausted as I shook my head and looked at Zoe. She didn't say anything, but looked back at me with wide eyes.

"Not until we know what's going on," I said, pulling Hopper out of the bag and saying the spell to bring him to life.

Jill brightened upon seeing the dragon, but only briefly. "If someone's looking for us, they'll find us here."

"I don't think so. We weren't seen coming here. Only I checked in – who knows where you are."

She lifted her head from watching Hopper to look at me dubiously. I handed her a couple of apples from my bag and said "Feed him. He'll tell us if trouble is near"

I turned my attention to Zoe. She was sitting on one of the double beds, watching me. "What did you do?" she asked in a whisper.

I could only whisper, "Zoe..." before I nearly collapsed onto one of the beds.

"Sydney!" Jill exclaimed, running to me. Zoe stayed where she was.

"Do you have your phone?" I whispered to Jill.

She reached into a pocket and shook here head. "I must have left it in the van."

"Mine's in the bag," I told her. "Call Adrian. Tell him to find me."

I saw Jill head towards my bag as I turned to look at Zoe again. She hadn't moved, her expression hadn't changed.

I gave in to the exhaustion and let my eyes close.

Like always, I had no idea how much, if any, time had passed before I could see his green eyes. This time they were alarmed. This time he was running to me.

"Sydney!" he exclaimed as he reached me. He was with me, and I knew it would be okay. Whatever this was, we would figure it out.


	3. The Third Night

The Second Day (Cont.)

Adrian only hugged me for a few seconds before he pulled back and looked into my eyes.

"Sydney," he said, much softer than before though still tense. "Are you alright? Jill said you collapsed."

I nodded, realizing that I did feel OK here. "I'm fine. I just cast one spell too many."

He hugged me again. This time, I pushed a little, and he got the message and pulled back again.

"You need to call Eddie," I said. "We got separated from him, and he needs to know that we're OK."

"Fine," he agreed. "Tell me where you are, and I'll send him there."

I shook my head. "No, Adrian. Just tell him that we're OK, then ask him what happened. Ask him if they figured out everything and caught…whoever."

I was getting frustrated. I could see that he couldn't believe what I was saying.

"Sydney," he said, "Castile needs to get to Jill."

I shook my head again. "Not yet. I need to know what's happening before I risk Jill and Zoe going back to them."

I couldn't really read his face, maybe shock. "Sydney, Jill trusts Castile, so do I. Hell, you trust him."

"I do," I responded, starting to feel a little desperate. "I know he would do anything to protect Jill, or me, but I know he won't always tell me everything. I just need to make sure I know what's happening. And you should call Jill, too. Tell her not to talk to anyone except you or me."

I don't know if he started to agree with me, but his expression changed. "Sydney…"

"Trust me, Adrian," I implored, and added "Please" for good measure.

He stared at me, but only briefly. He turned and walked away. "He'll go ballistic," he muttered as he disappeared.

I wasn't sure if I was supposed to do anything, so I just sat down. It was only then that I realized I was in Adrian's bedroom. I was sitting on his bed.

I thought about getting up – going somewhere else to wait for him, but laid down instead. My body didn't really feel tired in the dream, but I was emotionally exhausted. I closed my eyes and lay there until he spoke softly, until he said my name. "Sydney."

I could tell he was a few feet away from me. His tone was gentle, almost amused, so I didn't think I was in too much trouble with him.

I reluctantly sat up and looked at him. His expression was amused as well.

"What?" was all I could ask.

"I talked to Castile. He's gone ballistic." I looked down and bit my lip as he continued. "He's ballistic, and he's in awe."

I jerked my head back up. "Awe?"

"It seems that he saw you in the restroom, then watched the door close behind you. A minute later, one of the people they were fighting managed to break away and went into that restroom, trying to get to you and Jill. When Castile and Angeline broke away and followed, all they found was an enraged human who was trying to figure out how you got through a window that was much too high and didn't look like it had been opened in years."

He was grinning now, but I wasn't ready to laugh about it yet. "Human? They were fighting humans?"

"Mostly," He said. "There may have been a dhampir or two – they're not sure."

Now I was just mad. "How could they not be sure? Does that mean that they got away?"

"Not all of them. They caught the human that was in the restroom, but the others left. The new guardian got a license plate number but that was all. The human isn't talking."

I sighed. "Then it's not safe. They'll still be after Jill."

"Which is why you need to let Castile get to …"

I interrupted him. "Did you talk to Jill."

His face darkened suddenly. "Yes. Wherever you are, there are two 15 year olds who are scared to death, not only because of what happened in the restaurant, but for you. You haven't moved in hours."

"Hours?" I had to rub my head. "You told her that I'm alright, didn't you?"

"By the time I called her, she knew we had been talking. But she's scared, and your sister is about to bolt."

I shuddered. "Zoe hasn't called anyone, has she?"

He shook his head. "Yours is the only phone in the room."

"What have I done?" I asked myself under my breath.

Adrian sat down beside me and put his arm around me. "From what I understand, you saved Jill."

"For now," I whispered.

He kept his arm around me but used put his other hand under my chin and pulled it so that I would meet his eyes. "Which is what was needed, but now you need go back to the guardians. Now you need to figure out how to do it."

I bit my lip and nodded my head. "I don't know what to do, and I don't know how to wake up."

He kissed me briefly, then stood up. "I'll let you go. There are guardians looking for you now."

"At least one of which is ballistic," I murmured.

Adrian started to smile again. "He is, but he knows what you did, he knows that Jill is safe while she's with you. I could tell him some stores about that, too. Just make sure he finds you before the other guys do."

"Like I want to be interrogated by…" then I saw he was leaving. "Adrian! I need your help. I want your help."

"So use your phone, Sage," he smirked. "Wake up, and call me."

I sighed and laid back down, closing my eyes as I wondered how I could wake myself up.

* * *

The Third Night

I was shaken awake. When I opened my eyes, I could see that both girls were shaking me.

"Sydney," Jill said. "Adrian said we need to try to wake you up."

I tried to push them off. "Okay, okay." I said, sitting up.

I looked at them both, first at Jill, then at Zoe. Jill looked concerned, but Adrian was right about Zoe. She looked terrified, and I suppose that being stuck in a room with a vampire, and me having collapsed, didn't help any. I turned my full attention to her and tried to speak calmly.

"Zoe, I need you to help me. We need to get Jill back to where she'll be safe."

Zoe didn't speak, which concerned me, she just bit her lip and nodded.

"Did anyone try to get in while I was asleep?" I asked my sister.

"No," she answered, shaking her head. "A few people passed by the door, but they just walked by."

"Mostly they sounded drunk," Jill said, then added, "nice place you picked for us."

"So let's leave," I said. "Give me my phone."

I checked the battery as I turned it on and was relieved to see that it still had more than 50% left. I really didn't want to call Eddie. If nothing else he would ask how I had gotten us out of the restaurant. Only Adrian and Jill knew that I had started using magic, and I wanted to keep it that way. They would keep my secret, but I didn't want to have to answer to the guardians, or have anything about it passed on to the alchemists.

Still, Adrian was right. I trusted Eddie, and Jill needed to be protected by guardians, not an exhausted witch and a junior alchemist.

"Sydney, where are you?" Eddie was tense and to the point when he answered. I understood, but was still a little annoyed. No 'how are you?' No 'how is Jill?'

"Uh, fine." I said, answering the question he didn't asked. Then I started to given him the address. "We're…" I was cut off by shrieking.

It took me a few seconds to figure out that it was Hopper. I quickly said the spell to make him inanimate again, and moved my head to ask Jill to put him in the bag.

After the shrieking, the silence in the room was deafening. Then I heard Eddie asking if we were all right. When I assured him we were, he asked where we were again. As I gave him the address I heard Jill shush me. Zoe had her finger to her lips, too.

Then I heard them – a couple of guys somewhere outside our door. They were knocking on doors and demanding to let in to check for a 'fugitive'.

"Eddie," I whispered into the phone, "are there guardians here?"

"Not there, not at the address you gave me," he said.

"Damn," I said. I got up quickly and went to my bag. I'm sure I heard him say "Sydney" as I dropped my phone back in the bag, put the necklace on again, and thought about what else I could use to escape.

Both Jill and Zoe were alarmed as we heard the knocking right next door to us.

The bag went onto my shoulder as I managed to catch Jill's attention. There was a small, empty ice container near the sink. I motioned for Jill to fill it with water, which she did.

"Come on," I said to both, and we all went to the door. The knock and demand for entry came as I drew in a breath and thought of the spell.

"Open the door, but keep back," I whispered to Zoe. She did it, and we were soon looking into the eyes of two men I could only describe as thugs. Their eyes seemed to flare at the sight of us, but they quickly backed away as a flash of light and tiny fireball moved towards them.

"Hold on," I told both girls as I took their hands. Then I said to Jill, "the water – can you freeze it?"

She nodded and dropped the container of water behind us as we ran. I didn't turn back, but heard some cursing, so I hoped the ice had caught the thugs unawares.

We were invisible as we rounded the corner. I went into the parking lot and only then noted that it was after sunset. I had been out for hours.

All I could think of was to run again, but I knew we wouldn't get far. The thugs may not see us now, but I had no idea if I could keep the invisibility up long enough to get away on foot. So, I did the next best thing.

There were actually several old hotels and motels in a row. I didn't stay in the parking lot of the place I had rented the room, but went to the next one, and started looking for a car.

I love cars, my mom had taught me everything about them – including how to get into them when locked, and how to start them without keys. Of course I hated it. .I knew how I would feel if someone had taken mine, but I had no choice.

I picked out a plain, older sedan – something I knew I could get into and drive. I had to let the spell go to pull the needed tools out of the bags, but the job was quickly done, and we were on the road.

We were driving east, away from Palm Springs, probably away from Eddie. I couldn't go too fast under the circumstances, but it was just as well. I was tiring quickly again. Using the spell the second time in the same day, having barely recovered from the first, was taking its toll on me.

We were still diving in the city when I noticed that there wasn't much gas left in the car. I felt even guiltier, if that was possible. Not only had I taken some poor person's car, but I had run it down to empty. I finally pulled into a McDonald's parking lot, and we left it there. I got rid of the fingerprints – I had been trained to get rid of fingerprints in such situations. Well not situations where I had done the stealing, but the training came in handy.

As tired as I was, not to mention Jill and Zoe, I didn't want to stay too near the car. I made us walk for awhile, though I didn't use any spells. I was looking for someplace I thought we could stop and rest, maybe check to see if we were followed. Maybe call Eddie.

It took Zoe's whisper of "I'm hungry," to make me realize we hadn't eaten anything all day. I could see the sign for an Applebee's nearby, so we went there. I wasn't comfortable as we waited to be seated, but felt better when we were in a corner booth out of sight of the entrance. Another bribe to get us that booth - good thing I had plenty of cash with me.

I didn't think this would be the place to try to sleep, but I wanted to talk to Adrian.

"Jill?" He sounded a little worried when he answered. "Did something happen to Sydney again."

"Yes, something happened to Sydney," I answered.

"Are you safe?" he asked quickly. "Castile's been calling me so much that I've been ignoring him for the last half hour."

"We're safe for now," I said. "You need to call Eddie back and tell him to come to the Applebee's on…" I hesitated as I recalled the address I had been given, "South Alma School in Mesa."

"You're at some school on a mesa?" he asked.

"No," I laughed. I knew we weren't safe yet, but talking to Adrian did things to me. "It's an address - an address for an Applebee's Restaurant. Just tell him were waiting for him here."

"Why didn't you just call him," Adrian asked.

"He would just yell at me. You, however, will call him, tell him where I am, take the grief he's dishing out, then call me back and tell me how much you love me and miss me."

"Well I'll be damned," he said. I could almost hear his smirk. "You do know me better than anyone else."

"I do," I said, finally sobering a little. "But make it fast. Someone's still looking for us."

"Back in a sec, Sage," he said as he disconnected.

I sat with my back to the wall, between the vampire princess and my sister, finally sipping some coffee. My bag was next to me, supplies at hand, just in case. Zoe studied the menu, occasionally stealing glances at me. Jill seemed to be nervously looking at the people around us. She still wore the sunglasses when we entered, but they had been pulled above her eyes. She was exposed, she might be recognized as what she was, if someone entered and knew what to look for.

It even occurred to me that, since it was after dark, Strigoi would be a threat. Maybe the threat was small – I wish I had checked into that before bringing Jill here. I started to think I should have just sent her to Clarence's, as was originally planned. But she had wanted to go somewhere else so badly, if only for a few days. I realized she had done so well for so long, that I finally had to give in. I was able to get approval for this trip, but it was turning into a disaster – despite the extra guardian and alchemist.

Still, right now we had to stop, eat, and rest for a bit. I knew Eddie would be on his way within minutes, and with any luck we would soon be surrounded by guardians.

I found myself smiling as I heard my ringtone. I didn't know much about what was going on around us, but I knew that – even though he was hundreds of miles away – Adrian would help us get through it.


	4. Still the Third Night

The Third Night (Cont.)

Eddie and the others arrived just after our food. They made us get boxes, and eat in the car.

Eddie drove as Angeline sat in the front with him. Neil was in the car behind us with another couple of guardians. I was in the back, in the middle, between Jill and Zoe.

As he drove, Eddie was some combination of relieved and angry that I didn't think was possible. At least he waited until we were done eating to start in on me.

"I need to know what happened back there, Sydney," he finally demanded, glaring in the mirror at me as he drove.

"Back where?" I asked. I didn't want to tell him anything, he didn't know I was using magic, and I really didn't want him or any other guardian to know. I trusted him, but the guardians tended to share too much with the alchemists.

"The restaurant, the motel – all of it!"

I just closed my eyes and shook my head. "Not now, Eddie. Please."

"Sydney…" he began, obviously not satisfied. I never found out what he was going to say because Jill intervened.

"Eddie, don't" She said. "She's had a tough day."

He didn't calm down any. "We've all had a tough day!"

"Yes," Jill said. "So let her rest."

"I don't get to rest," he countered. It was as close to a complaint as I remember ever hearing from him, but at least he was still arguing with Jill rather than me. "I have to fill out reports. Paperwork," he spat. "Sydney should know all about that."

"So fill out your report!" Jill spat back. She was starting to get mad herself.

"She won't tell me what happened," he said. "What am I supposed to put in it?"

"Put the truth!" Jill nearly yelled at him. I touched her arm, and she spoke softer. "Put what you know – Sydney helped me escape a bad situation , then kept me safe until she was able help you find me again."

Eddie glared into the mirror, but softened a little.

"Unless you want to be turned into a toad," Jill said under her breath. I don't know if Eddie heard it, I hoped he didn't; but it did make me smile, just a little. It really wasn't a bad idea. Not Eddie, of course, but it would have made it easier if I could have turned some of the thugs we faced earlier into toads. I would have to see if there was such a spell.

"I guess I could say something like that," he said, finally seeming to be fairly calm. "I could throw in something vague about her ingenuity. They might buy it."

I breathed a sigh of relief before he added, "But they'll still ask her questions."

"Well they shouldn't," Jill said. "They should just be grateful to her. I am."

Eddie was still scowling a little, and I was a little amazed that Angeline had stayed quiet through all of this. I decided to try to change the subject.

"What happened to the van Neil had?" I asked. I had meant it conversationally, but it upset Eddie again.

"We think that's what got us in trouble," he said. "As best we can tell, someone saw the van enter Phoenix, knew Neil had rented it, and followed us to the restaurant. When they figured out we had a Moroi with us, they moved."

I shuddered. "Do they know it was Jill?"

"We don't think so," he said, and I felt a little bit of relief. "They knew the van came with a guardian, and figured out we had several guardians with us, but sometimes rich Moroi have that. We think someone at the LA airport, where he rented the van, put out the word that a dhampir was going to get someone."

"So just thieves looking to score?" I asked

"Thieves, maybe addicts." He said. "You know what a Moroi bite does to humans." Then he added, "You're not really supposed to know all of this."

Suddenly, I was the one that was mad. "Of course not! Why should I know anything?"

"Sydney," Jill whispered, at the same time Zoe squeezed my arm. I knew fighting with the dhampir would be upsetting to my sister, so I took a deep breath.

"You know what we know now," Eddie said. "The men you got away from at the motel were caught and are being questioned. We'll know more later."

"But will you tell me?" I asked under my breath. At the same time I said it, his mention of the motel brought something else to my mind.

"Eddie," I started, using my calmest voice, "I need you to have someone do something for me. Tonight – as soon as possible."

I paused for, and he said "Go on."

"There's a car at a McDonalds not too far from where you picked us up. Someone needs to get it and return it to the parking lot of the hotel we were at – or to the next parking lot over, really."

"Return it," he said slowly. I wondered if his tone was accusing, but I didn't flinch. I just described the car, told him what I could remember of the license plate number, and told him where it was parked.

Angeline was grinning from ear to ear as she turned to look at me. "I knew there was something about you, no one could be so perfect."

Jill glared at her, and she turned around again. I just kept my eyes on Eddie.

"Is there a gun in it?" he asked. "Because that might explain a few things."

I could feel my cheeks starting to burn at his reference to helping me get a gun out of the demolished Latte a week or so ago. "No," I said, knowing my embarrassment was showing. "But ask whoever does it to leave some cash, say $100 in it – for the owner's trouble."

Angeline snickered again.

"The owner's trouble," Eddie said, finally cracking a smile himself.

"I'll pay whoever back," I said quickly. I was glad to have the subject away from the gun, but wanted to get it off the car now. "So will you do it? Please?"

"Sure," he said, as close laughing as I ever remember seeing him. "We're almost there. Neil and those with him were going back to Phoenix tonight anyway. I'll ask him to go."

"Almost where?" I asked. He never told us where we were going, but he didn't answer. He was already on the phone with Neil.

"Angeline?" I tried. "Where are we going?"

She just snickered again. "You gonna shoot me if I don't tell you?"

I scowled and risked a look at Zoe. Her eyes were as wide as I had ever seen them.

* * *

Asleep at Last

It was too dark for me to see much of what was around me, but I think we were in some kind of compound. At least we had to go through a gate that had at least one guard.

We were quickly ushered in to our rooms. I was put with Zoe, Jill with Angeline. It made sense, but I was a little nervous about what Zoe would want to know. I wasn't wrong, though at least she waited until we were laying in the twin beds, lights off, and I (at least) was trying to get to sleep.

"Sydney…" she started, then couldn't bring herself to say more.

I drew in a breath. I didn't know what to tell her, but I knew I needed to say something.

"You have questions," I said, stating the obvious.

"Yeah," she said. I thought I could hear her turn to face me.

"Answer one of mine, first," I said. "What is the most important thing for an alchemist in the field, Zoe? What comes before everything else?"

"The mission," she said automatically, as I knew she would.

"And what is our mission?" I continued.

"Keep Jill hidden," she correctly replied, though this time she had to think for a minute.

"That's what I did. As for any other questions you have, I promise I'll answer them later." I was careful not to say how much later, and I certainly had no idea what I would say; but she seemed to accept it. Or, maybe she was just too tired to argue.

"OK," she said. "Remember, you promised."

"I'll remember," I said, turning my back to her and thinking 'how could I forget?'

I was tired, so tired that I think I fell asleep before I even considered using the spell again.

When I was aware of myself again, I knew where I was immediately. At the beach in Malibu, where Adrian and I had ended our day the last time we were together in the flesh. Where ended our day before he took me home, anyway.

"I thought you needed a rest after your day," he said, "and when we were here, you looked as peaceful and calm as I have ever seen you."

Though I'm pretty sure he was not next to me when I opened my eyes here, he was next to me now. His hand took mine and I squeezed tightly.

"You're right. Bad day, need rest. But how are you so sure we're not still in danger?" I asked.

"Castile called me when he got to the restaurant and saw you inside. He would have called again if he hadn't gotten to you guys."

"He's not happy with me, Adrian," I said. "He has questions about what I had to do to get away."

I felt Adrian's arm slip around me, though I kept my eyes fixed on the waves in front of us.

"It should be enough that you did it, that you kept Jill safe," he said.

"Jill helped me evade the questions," I said. "I think it is enough, for now. Eventually I'll have to tell him something, but you're right when you say I trust him. I do."

'Then, it'll be fine," he said, finally planting a kiss on my cheek. I didn't let him get away with just that, I turned my face to him and he took the hint. We were finally kissing after what had seemed like forever.

"It'll be 'fine' with Eddie," I said when I stopped to take a breath. "But I have no idea what I'm going to tell Zoe."

"Ah, your sister," he said, turning to look at the ocean again. "Did I tell you how much I'm looking forward to seeing her? I mean meeting her?"

I rolled my eyes. "Yeah, yeah – to see if she looks like me. 'Shock of beauty' and all."

"I expect to be shocked and awed," He said. Then he got serious. "She saw your magic?"

"She was in the middle of the spells," I answered. "I have no idea what she thinks of me, and I'm afraid to ask."

We just watched the waves for a minute or two before he said, "I could talk to her."

That's all he said, but I knew what he meant. It was tempting, but only for a minute - and I would never admit that I had even considered it.

"You'll talk to her," I said, "probably a lot. But you will not compel her. Ever."

He sighed. I knew that all he wanted to do was help me, to make things safer for me with the alchemists. I loved him for that.

"I could never do that to my sister," I explained. "I never wanted her to have to do this, but I can't let you mess with her mind."

"Maybe we could say that Jill did it," he suggested after another minute or two of silence. "She knows Jill can do magic, doesn't she?"

I shook my head. "She'll know Jill is a water user. I can't lie to her, either."

"What can you do, Sage?" Adrian asked. I was afraid there was some exasperation in his voice, and I didn't want to spend what little time we had together upsetting him or arguing with him.

"I can put her off," I said, turning to face him and laying against his chest. "Only Jill and you know about the spells I use, and you'll both keep the secret."

"Part of the secrets we're keeping," he murmured as he stroked my hair.

"For now," I agreed. "But not forever. Somehow, I don't want anyone controlling Zoe anymore than I want them controlling me. I couldn't keep her out of this, but maybe I can free her from it."

"Does she know how lucky she is to have you for a sister?" he whispered.

"She'll learn," I answered softly. "Just like you'll learn how lucky you are to have someone like me in your life."

He actually snorted into my head. "I already know. And I've checked my calendar. The couple of days before I could come to you is half over."

I didn't move, it felt much too good where I was just then. "I'm not sure we're safe yet," I said. "I don't even know where I am."

"I do," he responded, "and I'll be there tomorrow."


	5. The Fourth Night

The Third Day

Adrian never told me how he knew where we were when I didn't. I supposed Eddie could have told him, or maybe Jill was told and passed that information along. Either way, he ended the dream much earlier than I would have liked, saying he had to get some sleep before driving to meet us.

I tried to talk him out of it, but he insisted. It would be nice to see him, but I had no idea how to approach Zoe about him. I had enough to explain to her already.

Jill had missed a scheduled feeding the previous day, so she went with Angeline to another part of the compound. The dhampirs kept calling it a resort, but it felt different to me. Everything they said indicated we were still hiding from whatever had attacked us at the restaurant.

"We'll figure it out," Eddie said. Zoe and I were having a late breakfast. Very late – almost lunchtime, really. We were both exhausted from the running and hiding of the previous day, so we had slept in.

"We caught the two at that hotel you stayed at," he continued, "and we have the one from the restaurant. Eventually, they'll talk."

"So you have no idea if Jill's cover is blown," I demanded, though he wasn't really looking at me much. He mostly glanced between Zoe and his food.

He shook his head and cringed a little. "I can't believe you took two 15 year old girls to that dump. Do you know what kind of place that is?"

I felt my cheeks burn a little as I scowled and glanced at Zoe before trying to send an icy glare his way. "I didn't check. I was trying to get Jill away from whoever was after her."

"Well you did," he answered, still not looking at me. "No one thought to look for you there."

I looked down myself. My plate was still full. I took a bite of the eggs before I answered him. I was trying to eat more, but it was still hard.

"Someone thought of it," I said after swallowing, "or we wouldn't have had a problem later."

He finally looked at me, a little upset. "I told you, we have those guys, and they will talk."

"And until they do, we're stuck here," I grumbled. I didn't like being forced to stay here, and I didn't like not knowing where I was. Also, I still felt guilty about what happened to Jill. I still blamed myself for helping her deviate from the plan.

"People come here on vacation," Eddie said. I could tell he was exasperated now. "You might try having some fun while you're here."

I glanced at Zoe again and decided that arguing with him any more wouldn't help. "Fine, we'll do something when Jill gets back. But we didn't bring clothes for this weather." As we walked to the restaurant for breakfast, I had seen enough to know that we were somewhere in the mountains. The ground was covered with snow, which was fine –we just weren't dressed for it.

"Not a problem," Eddie said, rising and looking behind us. "They have winter clothing for all genders and sizes here."

I turned around to see Angeline and Jill approaching. Jill looked better than when I had seen her the night before, though it could have been either the sleep or the feeding.

"Hey Sydney, Zoe," Jill said as she moved to sit beside me. Angeline didn't look happy about sitting by Eddie – I guess there was still some unresolved drama there.

"We were just talking about what we can do today," I told the Moroi teen, but she wasn't listening. Instead she leaned in and whispered to me.

"He left early," she told me. "He'll be here in a few hours."

I'm not sure what she saw in my expression, but hers seemed to lose some of its enthusiasm. I was torn inside. I so wanted to see Adrian, but I had no idea how to explain him to, or hide my relationship with him from, Zoe.

"I thought you'd be happy," Jill whispered, looking a little crestfallen. Before I could respond, Zoe spoke.

"Can we go 4 wheeling in the snow?" Zoe asked.

Everyone looked at her. She was generally very reserved around Jill and the dhampirs, she rarely spoke.

I spoke first, "I think Jill should decide."

I could tell Jill was a little surprised that Zoe had spoken, but she quickly shook her head. "No, it would be fine. I think it would be fun."

I wasn't sure how to respond, so I just looked at Eddie. He had been staring at Zoe, but my glance seemed to make him move. "I'll set it up. There's probably a course or route or something they would recommend."

I looked back at Zoe, who just shrugged. "I don't get to go much at home, and I like it."

I thought about reminding her that this mission was about Jill, but didn't. I was glad that my sister had a chance to do something she liked before she would have to finally learn about being an Alchemist in the field, and surely Eddie and the others would make sure that it was safe.

I looked back at Jill who was grinning at me now. "It'll be fun," she repeated. "And you'll be amazed at what I can do with snow."

She stood and left before I could object. I had no idea what she had in mind, but hoped she didn't plan to do anything in front of Zoe. I remembered how much her water magic had upset me when I first saw her using it in Palm Springs, though I also remembered that it had helped to save me, me and Adrian.

I decided I didn't want to think about it, and I didn't want to eat any more. Zoe was about done, so I just scooted out of the booth and stood.

"Come on, Zoe. We need to change into something more outdoorsy."

* * *

The Fun

It was fun. We had two SUVs, Zoe and I were in one with Neil, who had found his way back to us just as we were ready to leave. Jill was with Eddie and Angeline in the other.

We took turns driving, though Neil was quick to point out if we deviated from the designated trail. But it was fine, we all enjoyed ourselves and I was a little disappointed when we were told we had to head back to the resort/compound to make it before sunset.

The fun ended when we were a few miles from our destination. We were off the trails and on a paved road when trouble came. Our SUV was in the front and I was driving when I heard an explosion. I had no idea what had happened, but I lost control briefly. At least the road was clear as I swerved, and I finally managed to pull over to the shoulder and stop. It was only then that I saw her.

"Zoe!" I exclaimed. She was bleeding, and looked unconscious. "No," was all I could muster as I pulled my seat belt off.

I was aware that Neil was out of the SUV and saw that the other vehicle had stopped in front of us. It was undamaged, and all three occupants were out of it.

With one more look at my sister, I jumped out and ran to Eddie. He and the other dhampirs were scanning the mountain side above where we had stopped, apparently looking for our attackers.

"Eddie," I said as I grabbed his arm. "Zoe needs help!"

He looked at me for just a second before Angeline said "There" and pointed. All of our eyes followed her pointing finger to see two guys who, when they saw they were seen, turned and started to run. Neil and Angeline had already begun to chase them when something odd happened. They were suddenly sliding in our direction, they almost looked like they had been pushed our way by a mini-avalanche.

"Jill!" Eddie said, and I turned to look at her. She was concentrating, staring at the guys who were tumbling down the hill towards us.

"Get in the truck." Eddie said, pushing her inside. She resisted only briefly before he had her inside. He was on his phone as he moved to the driver's side of the SUV. I turned back to the others to see that Angeline and Neil had already managed to subdue the guys that had slid down the hill.

"Zoe needs help!" I yelled at Eddie as Angeline climbed in to the back of their vehicle.

"On its way," Eddie said as he entered the SUV and drove away.

I turned to Neil, who was standing over the two restrained men. They weren't really struggling, and I didn't know if he knocked them out, or if something had happened as they slid down the hill.

"They have to get her to safety," he said. "Help should be here soon."

I nodded and climbed back into the SUV. It was then that I realized that my right arm hurt, that it wasn't working right. Still, I pushed that aside and got as close to Zoe as I could. I could tell she was breathing, but she wasn't responsive at all.

"Help's coming," I told her as I racked my brain. All the spells I had been forced to read, yet I had never come across anything like a healing spell. I seemed to be learning more about what I couldn't do, what I needed to learn.

"Help will be here soon," I repeated. It was all I could do for her just then.

* * *

The Fourth Night

Help did arrive fairly soon, though the sun had set by the time we were in another vehicle returning to the compound. There was a Moroi nurse with us, sitting in the back seat with us, but she was mostly shaking her head.

They didn't take us to our room, they took us to a large room that looked like it could have been used for a banquet or for dancing. The nurse and another guy, who looked like a Moroi, made a makeshift stretcher out of a blanket and carried Zoe into the room. I followed, holding my injured arm with the other. I heard his voice as soon as I entered.

"Sydney!" Adrian said as I entered the room. He had been standing next to the couch when they laid Zoe, but turned and started running to me. I shook my head, noticing that Eddie was also in the room.

"No," I said, pointing with my good arm. "Help Zoe."

He was right in front of me before I had finished my plea. He had both of my arms in his, but dropped them when I flinched and said, "Please, heal Zoe."

He looked at me desperately for a second but turned back to my sister. I walked towards them as I saw him go to her, shake his head as he touched her, and close his eyes. I was vaguely aware that Eddie was next to me.

"Do you need help?" he asked softly.

"Not yet," I whispered, though I realized I was holding my injured arm again.

He looked at me dubiously, but then turned his attention back to Adrian. The nurse was nearby, watching with interest. I thought I heard her say "Spirit" under her breath.

I could tell it took something out of him, but I really wasn't paying attention to that. I could see Zoe stirring, I could see her responding.

Relief filled me as I saw Zoe sit up. The nurse was immediately beside her, but Adrian had turned towards me. His expression was as dark as I had ever seen it.

"What happened?" he asked. Before I could respond, his attention had turned towards my injured arm. He looked back into my eyes, then back to my arm before moving to touch it.

"Adrian," I said, "are you sure you can? After what you just did?" I was finally starting to realize what healing Zoe must have taken out of him, and I knew what using too much spirit could do to a Moroi spirit user.

His expression was still dark, but his voice was gentle as he said, "Trust me, Sydney. I can do this for you."

I hesitated. I trusted Adrian as much as I trusted anyone, but I knew he might risk more than he could handle for me.

"Sydney, please," he said. "I did as you asked, now do as I ask. Let me help you."

I closed my eyes and nodded. His touch was gentle, as I knew it would be. The warmth of spirit filled me, and I wondered how I could have ever doubted him. I could feel the pain slip away, I knew I could move my arm normally again.

When I finally opened my eyes and looked at him, his expression was still dark, his eyes angry. His hand had dropped from my arm, and he seemed to be glaring.

"Adrian?" I asked, hesitantly.

"Who did this to you?" he demanded.

I heard a gasp from the couch. Zoe was still sitting, but she looked terrified, she was moving away from him.

"Adrian," I whispered. "Please."

His voice didn't soften, there was still a dangerous look in his eyes. "Sydney," then he turned to Eddie as he demanded "Who did this to her?"

At least he had said my name, at least he recognized me. I was grateful for that. I could at least try to reach him.

I scanned the room and saw a door that seemed to open into a smaller room. The light was off, and I wasn't sure what was in there, but I grabbed Adrian's arm and started pulling him towards it.

"Help me get him in there," I called to Eddie. Adrian didn't really resist, but I was glad when Eddie took his other arm and pulled him with me.

As we entered the room, I flipped the light on to see a table with six chairs, as well as a few other chairs against the walls of the room.

"Thanks," I told Eddie. "Get Zoe back to our room."

Eddie remained in the doorway, looking between Adrian and me. Adrian was staring at me, still angry, still dark.

"Sydney…" Eddie began.

"I'll be fine," I said. "He won't hurt me. Get Zoe out of here."

Eddie wasn't happy, but he left the room, closing the door behind him.

"Sydney…" Adrian began, though his voice was more confused than angry now.

"Adrian, please," I said. "It's just us here. Just you and me."

He closed his eyes and drew in a breath. When he opened them again, they were distant, unfocused.

I could tell that he wasn't completely with me just yet, but I had to try. I had to bring him back to me.


	6. Still the Fourth Night

Still the Fourth Night

It bothered me that, as I looked into Adrian's eyes, I could not tell what he was thinking. They weren't harsh or dangerous anymore, just vacant. What really, bothered me, though, was that he didn't speak. I was trying to speak calmly, to soothe him, but he wasn't responding at all.

Finally, I took both of his hands in mine,

"Adrian, please." I had said the words before, but without touching him. As much as I trusted him, his previous expression had unnerved me enough that I didn't really even consider it. Thankfully, that part was over and I had no hesitation now.

"Please," I added again when his eyes finally fixed on me. "I'm here, and I'm okay, thanks to you. Zoe is okay now, thanks to you. I need to know that you're ok as well."

His expression was changing, but I kept my eyes fixed on his. I couldn't risk looking anywhere else. Finally, he exhaled, then nodded.

"OK, Sage. I'm ok."

I nearly collapsed with relief. I didn't ever want to get that close to losing him again. His next words bothered me, but at least he was looking at me, talking to me. His expression was more earnest than hard.

"What happened, Sydney?"

"You helped me, cured me; and you saved may sister. I don't know what would have happened if you weren't here."

He softened. I was finally sure he was with me. "I was here," he said, in a voice I would call gentle. "The doctor was in one of the guest rooms, but had been called. He would have come soon."

"But Zoe's fine now, so am I. The doctor couldn't have done that. You did that." He had pulled me into a hug by then. I was relieved, but hadn't forgotten how close to the edge he was, "I'm so sorry, we took too much out of you..."

"It'll never be too much if it's for you," he said, tightening the hug he had on me. I wasn't going to resist.

After a few seconds, he released me and pushed me back far enough that he could look into my eyes. "Sydney," he said, his voice as gentle as I had ever heard it. "I need to know who did this to you."

I shrugged. "I think Eddie got them. Didn't he tell you anything?"

Adrian shook his head, but started to walk towards the door. I grabbed his arm, and was a little relieved when he stopped and turned to face me. "Don't you think we should let the Guardians handle it?"

"Have they gotten anything out of these guys yet?" He asked.

I could only shrug again. "I haven't talked to Eddie about it today, I can ask."

"And I can get into their heads. Whatever Castile can get, I can get more." He moved towards the door again.

I grabbed his arm one more time and said, one more time, "Please, Adrian." When he turned towards me again, I added, "just for tonight, let him handle it. We both need to rest."

That was totally true for me, and I didn't want him to try anything with spirit so soon after I had almost lost him.

"We both need rest," I repeated when he hesitated, then added, "and I'd like you to be with me when I a check on Zoe."

Finally he nodded. "OK Sage. For tonight."

* * *

It wasn't really that I didn't trust Adrian to keep his word, but I wasn't ready to leave leave the little room we were in yet. I sat in a chair and motioned for him to sit next to me.

"Really, Sage? This has to be the least restful place in the whole resort."

I took his had and said, "Maybe, but I'm not really ready to share you yet. Now that you're back, I want some Adrian time by myself. Just rest with me for a minute, then we'll check on Zoe, okay?"

It was true, I did really want some time alone with him without the drama that we had been enduring ever since I saw him here. I also wanted to make sure he wouldn't slip back into some kind of spirit problem, so I wanted to stay close to him for awhile.

I relaxed a little when he sat next to me and let me lean against him as I closed my eyes. But with the. Adrian problem apparently under control, I began to worry about Zoe.

Of course, worrying about her mental or emotional state was so much better than worrying about her her physically. I really have no idea what condition she was in when Adrian healed her, I just knew she was still breathing. Between Zoe before he had healed her, and Adrian after he had healed her, it really sucked that I had to worry about her emotions as well, but how could I not?

I kept telling myself that Adrian was fine and Zoe's probably asleep, but I still couldn't get it all out of my mind. I was almost relieved, though a little startled, when we herd a knock on the door and then saw the door opening.

I was exhausted, so I don't know where Adrian got the energy, but he immediately stood and moved in front of me to stand between me and the door. He actually blocked my view, keeping me from seeing who it was, though only for a few seconds,

"Adrian!" I heard before, before he had moved out of my way. If I hadn't known from the voice that it was Jill, I would have know as soon as Adrian said "Jailbait" as they hugged each other.

Eddie had entered either before or after Jill, I didn't know which, but he came to me then.

"He's Ok now?" Eddie asked. "Jill said he was, and he looks fine, bu..."

"He's fine" I interrupted, not really wanting a reminder of how bad Adrian had been a little earlier. I was 99% sure that he was fine now.

Eddie nodded as I asked "and Zoe?"

"She's with Angeline," he said, not really answering my question, and not making me feel any better.

"Angeline?" I know my voice was giving away the fact that I didn't think that was a good idea.

"I took her to Jill first," he said quickly, "that didn't work. Jill was really upset from the time we got there."

"The bond with Adrian," I sighed. I hadn't really thought about it, but I should have realized.

"I knew he was in bad shape when I left you with him," Eddie said, echoing my thoughts." I should have realized, but I was more concerned about your sister."

I nodded.

"Anyway, I called Angeline before long," he continued. "We all waited in your room after that. The way Jill was acting, I didn't want to leave her alone, and I was a little nervous about leaving your sister alone with Angeline." I was nodding, when he quickly added, "But Angeline was great. While I was staying close to Jill, Angeline was able to calm Zoe."

I was a little confused by this, "Angeline dosen't know about the bond."

"That's right," he agreed, "so she just thought Jill was upset about what he happened on the road. She didn't know about Adrian healing Zoe either, but I don't think Zoe said anything. Anyway, your sister was almost asleep when Jill said Adrian was ok and we left to come here."

I wasn't all that comforted, but nodded anyway. It could have been so much worse. "Ok, thanks."

I looked back to Adrian. Jill was still holding onto him tightly, but he could see me as I mouthed "we need to go."

He nodded and started to pry himself free.

* * *

"Thank you, Sydney," Jill whispered as we walked to the room I shared with Zoe. Jill was on my left between Adrian and me, her arm hanging on to him. Eddie was on my right.

"For what? I asked the Moroi teen.

"She laughed. "For bringing him back, of course." Her smile disappeared as she added, "I was really scared, he was nearly gone."

Confirmation of what I had feared. I didn't want to think about it again, so I said, "Thank you for waiting with Zoe. I'm sure she was upset about all of this."

"That was mostly Angeline," Jill said, echoing Eddie.

"And Zoe was really ok with Angeline?" I asked tentatively.

Jill nodded. "Angeline was great. You'll see."

I had my doubts, but Angeline had changed since she joined us in Palm Springs. She had turned into a pretty good guardian for Jill, and was doing better in school. But she was far from perfect, and I was afraid she was a little much for Zoe.

Still, when we arrived at the room, Zoe did look calm. She wasn't asleep, but was lying in bed Angeline sitting in a chair next to her. They were leaning in as if one of them was whispering to the other when we entered. Still, Zoe was out of bed immediately, running to me and pulling me into a tight hug.

"Sydney!" Se exclaimed. "I thought you were ok, but..." She cut herself off as she glanced at Adrian.

I thought I could understand what she meant. The last thing she had seen before being pulled away from us was an extremely angry Adrian. I thought she might have understood that he had healed me as well as her, but couldn't be sure.

"I'm fine," I said, looking to see where the others were. All of theme were huddled in their own conversation. Adrain was speaking to Eddie with Jill nodding enthusiastically, agreeing with what he was saying.

"He healed us, didn't he?" Zoe asked.

That pulled my full attention back to her. I was staring at her when she added, her eyes wide, "I don't remember much except a crash and hurting. Then I blacked out. When I woke up, he was touching me, I felt warm all over, and the pain was gone."

I was too surprised at what she was saying to think of a response, but she whispered again, "then he turned to you. I couldn't hear much of what was bing said, but I think you we're afraid it would've be too much for him to heal you. But he did, I saw."

"Zoe..." I began, not having any idea what I would have said. But she wasn't done.

"I saw your face, Sydney. You looked relieved, but you were in pain, too." She had the same wide-eyed expression on her face, but looked down as she said,"was it the crash? I don't really know what happened to you."

I nodded weakly.

"I guess he convinced you to let him do it, because I saw him put his hand on you and," she lowered her eyes and shrugged. "Then you looked ok," she said looking back into my eyes. "But he..." She bit her lip. "He wasn't."

I looked at Adrian. He was still talking to Eddie, Eddie wasn't liking what was being said.

"He's a Moroi spirit user, isn't he?" Zoe asked bringing my attention back to her. Her face was a little tense.

"You know..." I began.

"That they can heal? Yeah." She interrupted, nodding. "But you're the expert on spirit."

I was shocked at what was coming out of my sister's mouth. "Did Stanton tell you that?" I asked.

"Please," Zoe said, almost snorting. I was glad her expression was amused now, rather than shocked. "Stanton told me almost nothing. But I did hear Dad talking, sometimes."

"Dad?"

"Yes," she said, nodding again. "I don't think he knows too much about it all, but he did talk about you being with dhampirs that were healed by spirit. Since its really mostly a mystery to the Alchemists still, he said that you probably know as much as anyone about it."

I had to shake my head again. "Dad?"

"Yeah. So will we be ok?" She asked, her expression a little uncertain now. "Do we need to do something about the taint?"

I had to close my eyes to keep Zoe from seeing them roll. "We're fine," I said, then realized it was a little too curt.

"Do you feel ok?" I asked, calmer this time.

"Yeah." She said.

"Then all we need to do is be grateful." I said, turning back to the others. Their argument was reaching a climax.

"Do you want me to show you in _your_ head?" Adrian asked Eddie. He was angry again, and I could feel Zoe cringe a little.

"Fine!" Eddie shot back. "But Neil and I talk to them first, and we're there when you...whatever."

"Fine," Adrian said. Jill was still standing next to him with an almost triumphant look in her face.

Eddie saw that I was looking them, and pulled Jill away from the group. "Come on, Angeline. Jill needs to get some sleep."

Jill looked at me, then Adrian, and looked like she was going to object until he said, "Castile's right. Go." The anger was gone from his expression.

Jill looked a little disappointed, but followed Eddie and Angeline out of the room.

"Thank you, Adrian." I said as soon as the door closed behind them. I almost called him Mr. Ivashkov, but Zoe had already seen us talking, if not arguing. She probably knew we weren't on a last name basis. Anyway, I didn't want to have to explain anything to her if I slipped up around her.

I elbowed Zoe, who, to her credit, got the message. "Yeah, thanks." She repeated,

"Anytime," then he hesitantly added "Sydney."

I was afraid it would get really awkward really fast, so I said, "see you in the morning,"

"In the morning," he repeated, smiling warmly. He gave Zoe a small nod before leaving the room.

I collapsed onto my bed. Some of it was an act, wanting to put off any questions from my sister, though most of it wasn't. I was exhausted.

"Sydney," I heard Zoe say.

I sighed and looked at her.

I was fairly sure the interrogation was about to begin, but if it was, she changed her mind. She hesitated, then asked, "do you want the bathroom first? You look tired."

* * *

I hadn't expected it, and I wasn't sure it was a good idea, but I awoke to find myself on a beach at sunset. I didn't turn my head, but could feel Adrian lying next to me, taking my hand.

"Adrian," I said quietly. "Are you sure this is a good idea after all you've done already?"

"When will you learn, Sage?" I heard him murmur as I felt his lips move to my neck, making me shudder. "I'll never do anything to put you at risk."

"I'm not the one at risk here," I managed to say before turning my head and joining in with the kissing.


End file.
